


The Name

by Kyriadamorte



Series: Kyri's Finnrose Week 2019 fics [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2019-07-02
Packaged: 2020-06-02 19:34:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19448137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyriadamorte/pseuds/Kyriadamorte
Summary: Finn's well aware of the importance of names.  He hadn't had one, not really, for the first few decades of his life, and the lack of it had weighed about his neck like a chain.ORThat one where Finn tries to come up with a name for his kid, but everything he chooses is wrong and there might be some minor panicking.





	The Name

**Author's Note:**

> For Day 3 - Family/Baby - at Finnrose week 2019

Finn's well aware of the importance of names.He hadn't had one, not really, for the first few decades of his life, and the lack of it had weighed about his neck like a chain. 

_You are nothing. You are replaceable - a single piece in a bin of grab-bag interchangeable parts. Thousands before you and thousands after and none of you matter on your own._

Poe had come up with 'Finn' on the fly, an off-the-cuff random association between his designation and a story from his childhood, but Finn still treasures it like a precious gift.

_I am a Person and my name is Finn._

He doesn't know why it's taking him so long to choose.Everything he chooses is wrong.

~

"We could call them Paige," he says one night, rubbing his hand over Rose's lower belly where tiny foot seems to be making an escape attempt.

"Hmm," she murmurs, turns.Her eyes are still mostly closed. She's sweaty and her face keeps scrunching up in discomfort.

She's beautiful.

"That's a lovely idea, Finn. But we don't name our children for the recently dead.Gotta wait a couple more generations before that one can go back into rotation."

Right.Okay, not Han or Amilyn or Ackbar then.Okay. That's fine.Back to the drawing board.

~

"We are absolutely NOT calling our child Poe," Rose says crisply and firmly across the crackling subspace radio.

Finn hasn't been handling being separated from Rose particularly well.

"You're a bit like those baby bird things that invaded the Falcon," Kaydel had said while she was helping him load things onto the small shuttle that he'd later be sharing with Rey and Poe.

He'd responded with wide eyes and a sputtering fumble of non-words, which he realizes hallway through doesn't exactly help his case.

"What are you talking about?" he finally manages.

"You imprint on people who are nice to you and then follow them around even when it's impractical," she says and then does a little wobble with her arms stiff at her sides which, yeah looks a bit like a porg, but absolutely does _not_ look anything like him.

That's absolutely not fair (it's a bit fair) and besides, "She's my _wife_ , Kaydel, my heavily pregnant _wife._ I'm allowed to be a little bit worried!"

"Yep," she says, handing him the last of the medkits, "which is why you know it makes more sense for her to stay at a place with adequate medical facilities instead of swanning off to the outer reaches to make nice with some bandits."

He had. And he does actually remember how to follow orders. 

Still, he's found a way of sweet talking his way into weekly chats Rose.Doesn't always get _privacy_ on those chats, but he does get to check in.He'd had some ideas since the last time they'd spoken, but apparently they weren't going over well.

"Why not?" Finn asks, pointedly ignoring the way Rey is cracking up beside him.

"It's not happening," Rose says and then cuts off the channel.

~

The next time they speak, it's been nearly a month. Or nearly a month by at least _some_ planets' calculations. It feels like forever.

"What about Hope?" Rose asks while munching away on ration bar.

Finn doesn't _hate_ it, but-

"A bit on the nose, don't you think?" he asks, hoping she's not too disappointed with his lack of enthusiasm.

She takes another huge bite and chews thoughtfully."Fair enough.Suppose it also puts a lot of pressure on the poor kid."

She smiles, that fully wide smile that feels like it could tip over into laughter at any moment. "And I'm pretty sure I'm not the only Resistance parent who's going to have that idea. I'd bet you all the money in Canto Bight there are going to be at least a dozen Hopes over the next ten years."

He smiles in answer and their conversation turns to their respective adventures (or, more specifically, misadventures).

~

Finn may or may not be starting to panic.

He's still got time, but _technically_ the baby could come at any moment now and he can't even figure out a name and what does he even know about being a father anyway? He can't remember his own, can't remember his mother, either - just Phasma and his unit leader and the older stormtroopers who would help him hide when he needed to cry and he's pretty sure none of those are a good model for parenting. Rose has made a huge mistake. Rose is going to realize she's made a huge mistake.Rose is going to leave him.Rose is going to-

"Finn?"

He takes in a wheezing, shuddering breath. "I'm fine!" he gasps out.

"Yeah, you sound it," she says, shuffling (waddling) over to where he's sequestered himself in the corner of their shared room.She pulls up a chair and plops herself down in it gracelessly.She's beautiful and amazing and she should be relaxing instead of dealing with him and-

"I can't get down there, so can you come at least a little closer over here?"

Finn obliges, shuffling until he's leaning against her knees (her lap is currently out of the question).

She scratches her fingers at the nape of his neck in the way she knows he loves. "Big breath now, yeah?"  
  
They repeat that until Finn isn't worried about passing out.It takes a while.

She keeps playing with his hair and rubbing her thumb along the space behind his ears. "You wanna tell me what's going on?"

He has a lot of Very Valid Points he wants to bring up.He doesn't manage to make any of them.

"I'm gonna give our kid a stupid name."

Rose doesn't laugh at him, although he wouldn't have blamed her if she had.She just sits there, quiet.

"The flowers on my planet were all dying out by the time I was born.I don't even think they'd ever seen a rose - any kind.They just wanted something pretty."

"Yeah, but even that is-"  
  
Rose barrels on ahead, not letting him interrupt and get himself worked up again. "My sister Paige was named after a character in my mother's old fairytale book."

She cups his cheeks and turns his face to hers. "Whatever name you choose - whatever name _we_ choose _-_ is going to be fine, I promise. Besides, it's not like I'd ever let you choose anything too stupid."

He smiles weekly, but - "I'm going to mess it up, Rose. I'm going to mess it all up."  
  
She smiles, strokes his lip, "Yeah, you are.And I am, too. And it will be alright."

~

In the end, Finn and Rose don't name their daughter after a fallen hero or loved one.They don't name her after a friend. Or a sentiment. They find her name in the pages of a book - a swashbuckling pirate with a soft spot. A fun little character from a children's story.

Valtaren.Val, for short.

And it's fine; it's freeing. It's wonderful, really.

~

So.That's the first hurdle taken care of.


End file.
